We Are Who We Are
The content of my work is connected to the various stages of my life. I create a visual response to them through my paintings, describing specific events of my childhood and adolescence. Interpreting these events through painting allows me to dig into my memories, which in turn triggers others, creating a conversation between the past and the present. The process of reflecting on my past is mirrored in the ways I approach my paintings. The blank surface on which I begin a painting is the field where I tie my memories together. The exploration I undertake in making a piece is parallel to the adolescent complexities I faced growing up. I use the figure as a way to exploit my past in this visual playing field. I use the body language of composition to emphasize the relationships between other memories. The clothing of the figures gives me the chance to create a nostalgic reference point where I can incorporate icons of the past that people of any age could relate to. For me, visiting the past isn’t always clear, so I paint some areas flat and ambiguously. This ambiguity appears regularly in the grounds of the work, but can also appear in the figures themselves. Events of great impact are highlighted by my attention to details of the represented objects. Abstraction and realism, as complementary languages, unite the past and the present, and help me tell my stories.
